


Awaydays

by Polomonkey



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Office, Dyslexia, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Humor, M/M, Nipple Play, Romance, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-18
Updated: 2017-04-18
Packaged: 2018-10-20 09:04:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10659366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Polomonkey/pseuds/Polomonkey
Summary: It's the office away day and Merlin's only objective is to make his long awaited move on Arthur.





	Awaydays

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Narlth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Narlth/gifts).



> For the bottom Arthur fest over on tumblr and also a birthday gift for the lovely Narlth - I hope you enjoy this my dear!
> 
> Written on my Kindle so apologies for any typos

Merlin hadn’t exactly been thrilled to hear that the office away-day was an overnight stay in Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. One because he vaguely resented the all-encompassing sway Oxbridge grads seemed to have over the British political system, two because he didn’t want to stay in a uni room again and suffer unpleasant flashbacks to his student days, and three because several of his colleagues went to Cambridge and seemed incapable of shutting up about it.

“I swear, if Cedric tells me one more about how exclusive his college was one more time…”

“You’re always letting him wind you up,” Arthur said distractedly, from where he was tapping away on his laptop. 

“He’s the most annoying man alive! You try having a boss who thinks he’s right all the time.”

Arthur raised an eyebrow.

“My boss is Uther Pendragon.”

“Touché,” Merlin conceded. “Are you ready yet?”

“In a second!”

“Oh come on, Arthur, I’m sure your presentation’s great. I don’t even know why you’re nervous, no one’s gonna be listening anyway.”

“Yes thank you Merlin, that’s very comforting.”

“Yeah well it’s gone seven and we’ve got a train at 6am tomorrow so let’s have it before I nod off.”

Merlin settled back a little on Arthur’s couch. Good Lord, the man had such a comfortable office. Merlin didn’t mind the cosy little IT set up he worked in but it was nice to flop down on Arthur’s vast leather sofa and help himself to Arthur’s secret chocolate stash every once in a while. (Arthur had threatened Merlin with grievous bodily harm if anyone else learned of the stash, but Merlin wasn’t fooled. Arthur might have been vice-president of Camelot Enterprises but he was a kitten at heart).

Said kittenish tendencies were probably the reason Arthur was so stressed about this presentation. Yes, of course, it was nerve wracking to address the whole company at once but Arthur had done it before. And it would be on the away-day so they’d all be slightly more relaxed than normal – an easy audience. Merlin knew Arthur could more than handle it. And yet the man seemed to have barely slept the last few days, judging by the bags under his eyes and his barely stifled yawns. He couldn’t help but wonder why Arthur was so worried about this one.

Never one to leave a thought unexpressed, Merlin said just that.

Unexpectedly, Arthur didn’t brush him off with another sarcastic comment.

“This is… I’m talking about access. And inclusivity. It’s… it’s important to me.”

Which pulled Merlin’s mockery up short. He didn’t often see Arthur look so personally engaged in something; he was normally a master of professional detachment.

“Okay,” he said, softer. “Let’s hear it then.”

And it was at this exact moment in time, lounging on a preternaturally comfortable couch, the night before the office away-day, eleven months after he’d first laid eyes on Arthur Pendragon, that Merlin realised he was just the tiniest bit in love. It wasn’t because Arthur was almost offensively handsome. It wasn’t because he was smart, or witty, or passionate (although he was all of those things and more). It wasn’t even because he had the kind of arse that Merlin had been fantasising about since he was a fifteen year old in Accrington with a dodgy internet connection and a sudden fervent lust for the town rowing club, rugby team, and pretty much any other man who passed by his window.

It was because Arthur was preparing to get up in front of over a hundred staff members and talk about access and what it meant to him. Talk about growing up with dyslexia, talk about the teasing at school, the teachers writing him off, the endless exhortations to work harder and stop being so lazy. All things that Merlin had heard before, in piecemeal parts, but only in scattered confidences and late night mumblings when they were the last two working late in an empty office. Never put together as a story, never constructed to give so clear a glimpse of the child Arthur had been, the man he had become, and all the struggles in between.

After all, it was only by chance that Merlin had found out in the first place. And he always cringed a little at the memory because it hadn’t been one of his proudest moments. Tired and frustrated after a long day of complaints from people whose computers had reset themselves – which was actually exactly what was supposed to happen if anyone had bothered to read Merlin’s all staff email about the planned whole system reboot – Merlin wasn’t in the best of moods. Called from one irate colleague’s desk to another, Merlin felt like strangling the whole lot of them by the time Arthur phoned, sounding frantic. 

“It just – bloody – restarted,” Arthur squawked the minute Merlin got in his office. “I was working on a very important document!”

“I’ll be able to recover it,” Merlin said, straining on the edge of patience. 

“And what the hell is all this?” Arthur snapped, pointing at the screen.

“That’s the instructions for resetting your system,” Merlin said grumpily, because the text might have been small but he’d made sure it was in plain, jargon-free English. “The same instructions that I sent out in an email yesterday. Can’t you read?”

It came out a bit harsher than he intended but he was only snapping back. He didn’t expect the way Arthur’s face shuttered down, a glimpse of something oddly like hurt in his eye before his expression smoothed to blankness.

“I see. I have to take a call now. Please recover the document if you can.”

The words were so polite and so utterly distant that Merlin felt an uncomfortable spasm of guilt. It lingered long after he’d reset the PC and followed him all the way home. It hadn’t been a nice thing to say, after all. His mum taught adult literacy classes for God’s sake, he could only imagine how disappointed she’d be in him. And he knew it wasn’t like Arthur was illiterate but he’d clearly been hurt by Merlin’s tone.

So the next day Merlin steeled himself and went to Arthur’s office just before lunch. The man himself was sat at his desk, studiously staring at a folder and not meeting Merlin’s eyes.

“Just wanted to check in, see if you had any more IT issues?”

Arthur shook his head minutely.

“Great, okay. Well. I also wanted to apologise. I was a bit short yesterday. Been putting out fires all over the place, I got a bit irritable. Didn’t mean to snap.”

The silence that followed his stumbled explanation was excruciating. 

“Anyway, er, yeah. So. That was it. Unless I can help with anything else?”

Arthur shook his head again. Merlin turned to go, wondering if this was only the second most awkward moment of his life or whether this actually tipped Uncle Gaius walking in on him masturbating into second place (though at least Arthur hadn’t laughed and merrily said 'boys will be boys' as he left the room…)

Merlin was nearly out the door when Arthur spoke.

“I’m dyslexic,” he said, very stiffly. “So I can read but it… takes a bit longer sometimes. I wasn’t trying to make your job harder yesterday.”

If Merlin felt guilty before, now he felt like the worst person in the world, second only to Hitler and the people responsible for cancelling Firefly.

“Oh God, I’m such a twat,” he said before he could stop himself.

To his great surprise, Arthur barked out a laugh.

“I suppose I was a bit of a twat too, not taking notice of your email,” he said, much less stiff than before.

“Ignoring IT’s emails is a time honoured office tradition,” Merlin said sagely. “You people forget that we have access to your browser history and should thus be feared.”

Arthur laughed again.

“Alright, point taken. I’ll show some respect in the future.”

“Ditto,” Merlin said, grinning. “Okay. Well I’m gonna head-”

“Have you had lunch yet?”

“No.”

“Great Vietnamese place round the corner,” Arthur said, pulling on his jacket. “I usually take new staff there but it’s been a bit hectic recently. You fancy it?”

“Yes please,” Merlin said.

And after that, they were friends.

And friends they had been, for eleven happy, snark-filled and occasionally drunken months, until this very point in time, with Merlin clutching the soft leather of the sofa beneath him and trying desperately not to throw himself at Arthur’s feet.

“So… what did you think?”

“I…I…”

For a moment Merlin was lost for words, looking at the poorly concealed nerves in Arthur’s lovely, tired eyes.

“I think it’s brilliant,” he said and was rewarded with a smile that made his insides fizz like sherbert.

 _Cambridge_ , Merlin vowed to himself. _That’s when I’ll make my move_.

 

***

 

Said move had to be postponed slightly by the fact that Merlin had to actually engage in some work over the residential. He dutifully listened to Uther's overly long speech about their upcoming office move and participated reluctantly in a dull as dishwater working group led by Cedric 'Did I Mention I Read History at Cambridge?' Jackson. Cedric's theme was ownership, which he basically used as an excuse to talk about how well he owned his work projects while Merlin and Gwaine passed notes at the back and snickered every time Cedric pronounced alumni wrong (he seemed to have it confused with Illuminati).

Finally, tucked between the HR update and Uther's closing address, Arthur took the floor to speak.

He was neatly dressed in a light blue button down and grey jeans, hair perfectly coiffed. Merlin reflexively ran his hand through his own scruffy mane. Ever since his recent love revelation, he'd become hyper aware of how he looked and acted around Arthur - actually making an effort to pack nice clothes for the residential and compulsively chewing gum to make sure he was minty fresh at all times. Just in case somehow Arthur got the sudden mad urge to kiss him...

Merlin tuned back in from a pleasant daydream about Arthur shoving him up against one of the trophy cabinets that littered the corridors to find the object of his lust was already well on with his speech.

“I’ve been working with Mason and Halle, the architects we’ve chosen to design the new office, and we’ve been having a lot of conversations around not only what we want this building to look like, but what we want it to represent.”

As ever, Merlin admired the smooth and confident way Arthur spoke, at once commanding and also personable, as though he was addressing every person in the room as an individual.

Merlin’s attention wandered a bit again as he focussed on another part of Arthur that he admired. Really, the permission to wear casual clothes on the away-day could only have been designed to torture Merlin. Arthur’s arse looked unfairly good in jeans. Not that it didn’t look good in suit trousers. Or chinos. Or swimming trunks from that one barbeque they’d had at Gwen’s…

Merlin realised he had zoned out for quite a while. Guiltily he forced his eyes back to the big screen, where Arthur was pointing at a mock-up of the new build.

“I’ve talked a lot about the features we’ll be keeping. But I just want to take a moment to address what’s new. Our vision for Camelot Enterprises is that of a fully inclusive, self-sustaining building of the future. I’ve gone over on how we’ll be ensuring we stay environmentally friendly as possible, but that’s not the only way we need to look to the future.”

He zoomed in on the front of the building.

“An inclusive workplace means access for everyone. Our building will be fully accessible for wheelchair users, with ramps, lifts, and ground floor office space reserved. We’ll also be incorporated braille signage and tech solutions for the blind and partially sighted. We’ve signed up for a new and more comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme which will provide free confidential support for those dealing with mental health issues and workplace stress. And finally we’ve been sitting down with a workplace disability charity to discuss adjustments for things like ADD, dyspraxia and dyslexia.”

Arthur swallowed and Merlin sat up straight in his chair, hoping Arthur could see his encouraging smile.

“This is an issue close to my heart, as I have struggled with dyslexia since I was a child.”

To the side Merlin saw Uther frowning but Arthur didn’t break his stride.

“I was lucky enough to receive help and tutoring that enabled me to meet the demands of this job but I know many are not so lucky. That’s why I don’t want Camelot Enterprises to pay lip service to the word ‘access’. I want us to embody it. I want us to be a company that empowers its employees and that promotes diversity from within. I want us to be proud to be individuals and also proud to share a common mission. I hope you're all as excited about this vision as I am."

Merlin certainty felt excited and proud to know Arthur at that moment. He joined in the warm applause, pleased to see that his colleagues seemed as impressed as he was. Uther was scowling a little to the side, Merlin noted with a pang. It was easy to piece together from various things Arthur had said before that his father didn't want anyone knowing about the dyslexia. That he thought acknowledging any vulnerability was a fatal move in business success.

Merlin clapped all the harder, as if to show Uther how wrong he was about his bold, brilliant son. And when Arthur caught his eye in the crowd, he grinned nearly fit to burst, treasuring Arthur's answering smile.

 

***

"You really think it was okay?"

"For the millionth time, Arthur, it was awesome. Do I need to get it tattooed on my forehead or something?"

Arthur rolled his eyes, pleased expression barely concealed. It was just the two of them left in the bar, everyone else having cried off to bed or gone out clubbing. Merlin didn't fancy a club but he definitely didn't want to go to bed yet, not when he was so hazily, pleasantly drunk, or when Arthur was sat so close and smelled so good...

"My dad's pissed off. But I don't care."

"Good," Merlin said fiercely. "He should have nothing but praise for you."

"Unlikely," Arthur said, with only a hint of tension in his voice. "I don't think he's forgiven me for not going to uni here yet. You know this is his alma mater?" 

"Of course it is," Merlin said. "Don't tell me. You went to The Other Place and brought shame upon the family."

"Oxford? Yeah, right," Arthur snorted. "I couldn't pass the entrance exam to either. I got a friend to help me format my A-Level coursework and just about scraped into Leeds Met."

"Ah," Merlin said. "And Uther wasn't-"

"A happy bunny, no. Even when I worked my arse off for a 2:1. He basically implied that a third from Cambridge was better than a 2:1 from Leeds Met."

Arthur sounded more resigned than bitter, but Merlin was bitter on his behalf. What gave Uther the right to make his son feel small, knowing that he never put in less than 100% in anything he did?

"No offence but your dad's a moron," he slurred out and Arthur chuckled, thank God.

"That's your boss and mine you're talking about."

"You're worth ten of him," Merlin said, which was maybe a little too much in vino veritas, but worth it for Arthur's blushing smile.

"You're being awfully nice today," he said. "Are you looking to borrow money or something?"

"Wow. That is low. A friend can't even compliment another friend without having his motives called into question-"

"Merlin, this is the longest you've gone without calling me a clotpole since I first met you."

"Oh yeah? Well maybe I..."

The snark died on Merlin's lips. He'd never been wary of rushing headlong into potentially disastrous situations when something important was at stake and he wasn't about to start now.

"Maybe I was kinda proud of you," he said, too drunk to be embarrassed by his sincerity. "For your speech. And a bit in general. For the way you are."

He risked a direct look at Arthur, who had an odd inscrutable expression on his face.

"I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop," he said slowly.

"No other shoe," Merlin said, fiddling with his beer mat. "Unless, you know. There's a shoe of... attraction. As in, like. I might be attracted. To you."

He had leaned so far down to avoid Arthur's eyes that his chin was practically resting on the table. 

"Oh. Right. That's um, that's a lot to take in."

Arthur did sound slightly shell-shocked.

"Well. I guess I only have one question... Did you really just hit on me with the phrase 'shoe of attraction'?"

"Oh my God!"

Merlin's head shot up to see an infuriating grin plastered across Arthur's face.

"I've had like four whiskies! And words are hard! You know what, that really is it, catch me ever trying to be nice to you aga-mmph-"

In the grand scheme of things, Merlin decided not to be annoyed that Arthur had interrupted him mid sentence. Especially since the interruption came in the form of a kiss.

A very long and enjoyable kiss, that seemed to take them all the way from their table in the corner to the exit of the bar, still locked together.

"Wait, are we-"

"Unless you don't want-"

"No, I do-"

"My room's closer-"

It was indeed a short walk to Arthur's room and Merlin didn't even attempt to keep his hands to himself. Arthur didn't seem to mind, letting Merlin push him against the corridor wall for a kiss every few seconds, and even once letting an unfairly arousing moan out when Merlin tugged on his hair.

Once safely behind a locked door, Merlin pulled Arthur over to the tiny student bed, breathless with want. He pushed him down onto his back and then climbed on top on him, hips grinding against hips. Fingers fumbling in his eagerness, he damn near ripped the buttons off Arthur's shirt in his haste to get it open. 

"Hey, that was my-ohhh"

Merlin neatly sidestepped further protest by latching on to Arthur's nipple, swirling his tongue around the left while he rubbed and pinched the right.

Arthur practically went boneless beneath him, clutching at the bedsheets with clenched fists.

"Ah, don't stop..."

Merlin switched nipples, wanting to see how pink and raised he could get them, how much closer to the edge he could push Arthur. He was in just the right position to feel Arthur's cock pressing against his thigh, and the thrill of being the one to elicit such arousal was intoxicating.

He felt hands lifting his shirt.

"You're wearing too many clothes," Arthur breathed and he already sounded wrecked.

Merlin obligingly divested himself of his top, and then wiggled around until he was free of his jeans. Arthur reached for his own zipper but Merlin stayed his hand.

"Let me."

Undressing Arthur was like unwrapping the world's best birthday present, Merlin was so excited he could barely take it all in; the fine dusting of hair on Arthur's thighs, the way he arched his hips to help Merlin slide his jeans down, the swell of his cock under tight black boxers.

"You are unbelievably hot," Merlin said, which wasn't an original thing to say but had the advantage of being 100% true.

"Not as hot as you," Arthur said, bucking his hips up into Merlin's.

"Lies," Merlin said happily, flicking a nipple just to watch Arthur pant.

He leaned down to press a kiss to Arthur's neck, then another to his collarbone. Arthur's cologne was sharp there, cirtrusy and fresh. It reminded Merlin of late nights in the office, of standing just a bit too close in the lift after and catching the scent of Arthur's skin.

"You smell amazing," he muttered, because apparently all his lines tonight were going to be more clichéd than a Katherine Heigl film. Arthur didn't seem to mind though, considering the blush spreading down his chest.

Merlin decided to follow that blush, trailing kisses down Arthur's chest until he reached his stomach, admiring the ample flesh there, plump enough to bite.

He did just that, lightly, and Arthur moaned.

"Stop teasing..."

Merlin smiled into Arthur's skin, nosing down until he reached his boxers, mouthing at the swell he found there.

"No more teasing," he said and inched the boxers away until Arthur's cock sprang free, so close to Merlin's face that he couldn't help but reach out for an experimental lick.

Arthur bucked up, as if shocked.

"Please," he whimpered and Merlin decided to put them both out of their misery.

He swallowed the tip of Arthur's cock down, laving the underside with his tongue before taking a bit more in. Merlin was determined not to gag, determined to give it to Arthur so good that he'd never go looking for it elsewhere again.

It wasn't until he reached up to gently caress Arthur's balls that a hand came down to rest in his hair, pushing him lightly away.

"I can't hold on if you keep doing that," Arthur said and he looked wrecked. "But I want to- can we...?"

Merlin stared at him for a moment.

"Oh yes. God yes."

It was more than he had hoped for tonight but he certainly wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Arthur smiled then, sitting up to press a kiss to Merlin's outstretched hand.

“Okay. Do you have…”

“In my wallet,” Merlin said, reaching out across the floor to his discarded jeans. He also delved until he triumphantly pulled out a single sachet of lube.

“You brought lube to a work residential?” Arthur asked, grinning in delight. “Presumptuous…”

“Hey! I’m all about planning ahead. _Ownership_ at its finest.”

Merlin pulled himself back onto the bed and dropped his bounty in between them.

“So..." Arthur said. "You have a preference or…”

Merlin did, if truth be told. He’d be fantasising about getting inside Arthur’s perfect arse all day long. But his mother had raised him to be polite above all else, and he definitely didn’t want to steamroller Arthur into anything.

“Oh, I dunno,” he said, would-be casual. “I mean, it’s all fine with me.”

“It’s all fine with me too,” Arthur put in quickly. “Only…”

He looked down, a little coy.

“If you wanted to top… I wouldn’t mind that.”

Merlin decided that running round the room like he’d just scored the winning goal at Wembley might be too extreme a reaction so he settled for a very enthusiastic yes please. 

"How do you want to-"

Before he'd even finished speaking Arthur was wriggling to lie on his front, hips obligingly raised. He looked over his shoulder at Merlin with an expression that managed to be both cocky and nervous at the same time, and made Merlin want to ravage and coddle him in equal measure.

He settled for pinching Arthur's beautifully presented arse instead and saying, soft and sweet,

"I'll go slow."

Opening Arthur up with his fingers was perhaps the most delightful foreplay he'd experienced in years. Arthur squirmed and gasped in such delicious ways, eager and responsive to every last touch. If it weren't for the ache of arousal in Merlin's cock, he'd want it never to end.

Eventually Arthur sighed "Ready now," and Merlin rolled on the condom with trembling fingers, nearly sending the lube sachet flying across room as he squeezed the last drops out.

"Someone's keen," Arthur said, an easy smile on his face. He seemed more relaxed now he was stretched, as if he'd needed proof that Merlin wouldn't go too fast, ask too much.

"You have no idea," Merlin said, manoeuvering into position.

The first breach of his cock into Arthur felt so indescribably good that Merlin was glad they weren't barebacking, or it might have been game over straight away. As it was he hoped the barrier would be enough to keep from embarrassing himself, because the combination of tight, perfect heat around his cock, and the view of Arthur's toned back, muscles straining, had left Merlin right at the edge.

He seated himself for a moment, waiting for Arthur to get used to the sensation, then pulled out and back in. Arthur's groan of pleasure was like music to his ears. 

He tried to take it slow and steady but his resolve cracked the third time Arthur whispered "more" and soon he was pistoning in and out like a machine, one hand wrapped in Arthur's lovely hair, the other hand squeezing Arthur's arse, his thighs; moving down to fondle his balls, stroke his cock.

Arthur began to push back into Merlin's thrusts, grunting with exertion as he fucked himself on Merlin's cock. Merlin kept losing his grip on Arthur's cock, he was a little too drunk to do this as well as he wanted but Arthur didn't seem to mind at all.

When Merkin felt his orgasm coming he choked out a warning. Arthur only raised his hips a little more and the change of angle pushed Merlin right over the edge. He came with a shout of Arthur's name and a dizzying high that nearly blacked out his vision for a moment. It was a struggle to remember his own name for a second and then Arthur's desperate pleas reminded him. Still inside Arthur, he took a firm grip on his cock and pumped it once, twice, three times, and then Arthur was coming too. He tightened around Merlin's oversensitised cock in a way that was halfway painful and all the way hot.

Then they just panted together for a minute or so, Merlin's head resting on Arthur's shoulders.

"Gonna pull out now," Merlin mumbled after a while and made sure to take the condom with him. Arthur let out a tiny moan as their bodies parted and it made Merlin rush back from the bin to the bed to plant a soothing kiss on Arthur's sweaty forehead.

"You were incredible," he whispered, and honestly he might never stop speaking in clichés if Arthur kept rewarding him with these fond eyed looks.

He rolled Arthur gently onto his back and then snuggled in beside him, pressing another soft kiss to Arthur's neck.

For a while they just lay together, breathing each other in.

"Hey Merlin." 

"Yeah?"

"Wanna go get dinner on Saturday?"

Merlin smiled wide.

"Yes please."

He tucked himself a little closer to Arthur's chest, listening to the steady thump of his heart.

"Hey Merlin."

"Yeah?"

Arthur reached down the side of the bed and picked up Merlin's Converse trainer.

"Look. It's a shoe of attraction."

For which he got a well deserved pillow to the face. Before Merlin kissed it better.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
